The country’s biggest education union will consult members on industrial action this autumn if the government fails to make an “inflation-plus” pay increase for teachers.
In a letter to Nadhim Zahawi – seen by The Independent – the joint general secretaries of the National Education Union (NEU), warn they will not stand by “while you run both education and educators into the ground”.
It comes amid the biggest industrial strike on the rail network for decades and figures showing UK inflation hitting a fresh 40 year high, climbing 9.1 per cent in the 12 months to May — up from 9 per cent in April.
In their correspondence with the education secretary on Wednesday, NEU general secretaries Kevin Courtney and Mary Bousted claimed that teachers’ pay has fallen by a fifth in real terms since 2010.
As the union awaits a report from the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB), which makes recommendations on pay, they said: “We call on you to commit to an inflation-plus increase for all teachers.
“A clear and unambiguous signal that educators are valued, with undifferentiated inflation-plus pay increase for all teachers, is urgently needed. And you must fund schools accordingly”.
In a clear warning, they continued: “The current inaction from the government on these questions is causing real damage to education and to our members’ livelihoods.”
“We have to tell you that failing sufficient action by you, in the autumn term, we will consult our members on their willingness to take industrial action.
“And we will be strongly encouraging them to vote yes. We can no longer stand by while you run both education and educators into the ground.
It is understood any action would first involve an indicative ballot in the autumn term – and could lead to a formal ballot on strike action among teachers across the country.
In response, Mr Zahawi said: “We have proposed the highest pay awards in a generation for new teachers – 16.7% over the next two years – alongside further pay awards for more experienced teachers and leaders.
“Young people have suffered more disruption to their education than any generation that’s gone before, and it’s the vital work of teachers that is helping them get back on track.”
The cabinet minister added: “The last thing I – or any parent – want to see is anything that would risk undoing that progress. We will be considering the pay recommendations from the independent pay review body in due course.”
The letter comes after Dominic Raab, the deputy prime minister, insisted the government must take a “firm line” and “win” the argument against unions, or risk a “vicious cycle” of rising wages pushing inflation even higher.
“We really do understand the pressure that those on low incomes are facing at the moment, they are struggling to make ends meet.”
Setting out why public sector pay could not keep pace with inflation, he added: “If we don’t have those restraints, inflation will go higher for longer. And that will only undermine the pay packages of workers, particularly the most vulnerable workers, for a longer period of time.
“We’re taking the action, we’re taking a firm line with, for example, the RMT union, precisely because we want to protect this erosion of pay packets by inflation.”
